Almost all Midlothian adults partially vaccinated

But Prime Minister Boris Johnson has appealed to the millions across the UK who have not yet taken up the offer of a coronavirus vaccine to finally get the jab to help the country avoid tougher restrictions over the winter.

Public Health Scotland data shows 69,784 people aged 18 and over in Midlothian had received a first dose of the vaccine by September 12.

This means around 95.4 per cent of adults in the area are at least partially vaccinated – leaving just 3,330 remaining.

Those aged 18-29 have the highest refusal rates in the area, with 19.4 per cent yet to get a jab, followed by the 40-49 age bracket (7.6 per cent).

A higher proportion of children aged 16 and 17 are unvaccinated (29.8 per cent), but they were offered the jab much later than others.

Around 10.8 per cent of the UK population aged 16 and above have not taken up the offer of a Covid-19 vaccine.

As the Prime Minister launched his plan to “live” with the disease through the coming months, his chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance said getting vaccination levels up was the key to keeping case numbers down and maintaining lighter controls.

He said: “There are five million or so people who are eligible for vaccines now who haven’t been vaccinated.

“Trying to persuade those people it is the right thing to do to get vaccinated would make a significant difference.

“The immunity is really important to keep this down and allows lighter measures to be put in place to keep it under control.”

Existing measures in Scotland include vaccine passports, face masks in public places and encouraging people to work from home.

However, Mr Johnson said the “priority” was to get everyone possible vaccinated, insisting that it was in their own interests to get protected.

The Government said that vaccine protection was holding up "very well" against the disease, but there was evidence that it was fading – particularly in those who are most vulnerable.

Meanwhile, estimates from the ONS show there are around 4,183 12-15 year-olds in Midlothian who will be offered their first jab from this week.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​